Missoula Personal Injury Blog

Many Montana residents are worried about the potential dangers posed by infections, especially because serious infections can be deadly. If a patient goes into sepsis, he or she could die because of the way the body responds to the presence of an infectious agent. While treatment of sepsis or septic shock is critical to save lives, the wrong treatment decisions can also be dangerous. Physicians have raised questions about a campaign that aims to begin specific treatments for sepsis within one hour after medical professionals recognize the condition.

Some emergency room physicians argue that following these guidelines strictly could actually pose an increased danger to patients without protecting lives, due to the risk of a misdiagnosis or overtreatment. Sepsis can, of course, be fatal, and treatment is critical. However, a misdiagnosis could lead to powerful, inaccurate treatment that could cause severe, long-lasting side effects. Previous directives for treating sepsis put in place protocols for three and six hours after diagnosis. The intention was to reduce the time between diagnosis and treatment, but the rush associated with a one-hour protocol could lead to mistakes in diagnosis, doctors argue.

In June 2018, a man installing a beer-dispensing system at SunTrust Park, the home ballpark of the Atlanta Braves, was found dead in a concession stand beer cooler. Now, the widow is filing a wrongful death lawsuit against the Atlanta Braves and the construction team in charge of the installation. Montana residents should know that the man had invented a system called Draftwell that reduces the average pour time for beer. He had installed it previously in two Major League Baseball stadiums.

The lawsuit alleges that the construction team knew about issues with the door release mechanisms in the stadium's coolers. In fact, the team had received an email about this prior to the incident. The team should have also known about any carbon dioxide leaks in the draft beer system. Not only that, but they should have also addressed the issues before the installation began.

Long holiday weekends can be particularly dangerous for drivers since more cars are on the road, but bad weather and other factors can also contribute to accidents. There are things drivers can do to make the roads safer for themselves and others.

First, people should be aware of and obey traffic laws. Speeding and other violations are among the top causes of motor vehicle accidents. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that in 2013, driving under the influence was a factor in almost one-third of deadly car crashes. Drivers who would never consider drinking and driving might still get behind the wheel when they are tired, but this can be dangerous as well. People should remain alert while driving.

According to estimates, there are between 40 and 60 wrong-site surgeries every week nationwide. These mistakes can cause severe damages that may affect Montana patients for a lifetime. Taking a time out is the practice of medical personnel to have a meeting prior to surgery. This procedure allows for doctors and medical staff to review the case and voice any concerns they have.

According to an associate director working with the Center for Transforming Healthcare, the time out is the last safeguard before surgery. It is the last chance for medical staff to avoid permanently injuring a patient due to wrong-site surgery. The worst thing that can happen, according to the associate director, is for the time out process to become rote.